Ohio’s Haunted Hotels

Ghosthunting Ohio - Haunted Hotels
Ghosthunting Ohio, On the Road Again by John B. Kachuba

Ever think you might want to spend a night in a haunted hotel? Ohio is full of haunted hotels. Here’s a sampling of some of the spookiest from Ghosthunting Ohio – On the Road Again a book by John B. Kachuba:

Hilton Netherland Plaza – Cincinnati This beautiful Art Deco hotel right in the heart of Cincinnati is home to the Lady in Green. The spirit of a woman who jumped out a window high atop the hotel after her husband was killed while working on the construction of the hotel, she is most often seen on the elevators wearing a fancy green dress.

Hotel Breakers – Sandusky Located in Cedar Point Amusement Park, the hotel has been serving guests for more than 100 years. The hotel is haunted by the ghost of a woman named Mary who hanged herself in a room on the second floor.

The Old Stone House Bed & Breakfast -Marblehead This bed-and-breakfast is supposedly haunted by the ghost of a little girl who fell out of a window and flew three floors to her death. Guests claim to hear flushing toilets on the third floor, and some have reported photographing orbs in haunted Room 11

Siesta Motel – Norwich In 1994, a man who had argued violently with his mother left their house and rented a room at the motel. He was awakened in the middle of the night by an intruder. A struggle ensued, and the man was killed. Guests and employees now hear slamming doors, crying and laughter, and whispered obscenities. Lights go on and off by themselves, and some guests have reported being struck by the unseen presence.

The Lofts Hotel – Columbus The boutique hotel in Columbus’s new Arena area began life in 1882 as the Carr Building and housed several different businesses until it became a hotel in 1998. Perhaps the Lady of the Lofts, a woman in Victorian clothing who haunts the hotel, was an employee in one of those businesses; we don’t know. What we do know is that several people have glimpsed her from the corner of their eye in the stairwell and occasionally in the halls. Recently, a hotel security guard named Kevin heard a woman’s horrific screaming on the second floor in the middle of the afternoon. For twenty minutes he frantically searched the area but never found an explanation for the screaming.

The Golden Lamb – Lebanon One of America’s venerable old inns, the Golden Lamb has seen scores of generals and presidents, writers and actors, sports figures and entertainers pass through its doors since it was established as a stage-coach stop in 1803. Many of these guests found the inn so comfortable that they simply decided to stay. Look for the ghosts of Senator Clement L. Vallandigham, who accidentally shot himself to death in what is today a dining room; or Ohio Supreme Court Justice Charles R. Sherman, father of Civil War general William T. Sherman; or the little daughter of Henry Clay, Eliza, who died from an illness at the inn.

About the author:  John Kachuba is the award-winning author of twelve books and numerous articles, short stories and poems. Among his awards are the Thurber Treat Prize for humor writing awarded by The Thurber House and First Place in the Dogwood Fiction Contest. John teaches Creative Writing at Ohio University, Antioch University Midwest and the Gotham Writers Workshop. He is a member of the Historical Novel Society, the Horror Writers Association, and the American Library Association’s Authors for Libraries.

John frequently speaks on paranormal and metaphysical topics and is a regular speaker at conferences, universities and libraries and on podcasts, radio and TV.

Want to read more about haunted hotels and ghostly places in Ohio? Get your own copies of John’s books  Ghosthunting Ohio and Ghosthunting Ohio – On The Road Again